On Oct. 28, 2017, we celebrated KODU’s
91st anniversary with a potluck luncheon in the downstairs
fellowship hall at St. Paul’s. Riina Elsey provided us with a
trivia contest, and the pleasant afternoon finished with a
screening of “The Vacationers”.

Our annual Christmas party with the
Estonian church congregation took place on Dec. 9, 2017. After
the church service, we enjoyed a hearty meal of traditional
Estonian holiday foods. Everyone admired the beautiful table
decorations which were handmade by the students of the Detroit
Estonian School (DEK) and Ool Pärdi. After the meal, traditional
Estonian Christmas songs were sung in hopes that Jõuluvana would
come to visit us. Santa’s elfin helpers, Monica Rajandu-Turner
and Monica Foedisch, distributed gifts to all the good children.

This year, we celebrated the 100th
anniversary of the Republic of Estonia on February 24th. This
was the first time in many years that our celebration coincided
with the actual date. The program began with Arvi Sinka
accompanying our singing of the U.S. national anthem. The
opening remarks were given by Loit Maripuu, chairman of the EELC
congregation. We were then treated to a video of Estonian
president Kersti Kaljulaid’s greetings to all Estonians
worldwide. Next, a trailer of the film, “Raising the Flag”, was
shown. It was followed by the DEK students singing “Mu koduke on
kallike”. Our guest speaker was Monica Foedisch. Krista Pärdi
read “Music” by Juhan Liiv. Axel Peil gave the closing remarks,
and the program concluded with the singing of the Estonian
national anthem. Afterwards, we enjoyed champagne and a
delicious meal, followed by kringel and a specially prepared
torte. Merriment and dancing rounded out the event.

Our annual Vastlapäev (Mardi Gras) was on
Mar. 3, 2018. The afternoon began with sledders tackling a snowy
hill in Novi’s Lakeshore Park. Afterwards, all went to the Aksu
home to enjoy steaming bowls of pea soup and the traditional
vastlakukleid.

Saturday, June 16 saw everyone gathered
at the Pärdi farm for Jaanipëav and to toast the upcoming
wedding of Ool and Kellie. Our potluck picnic was delightful. A
cake, furnished by Kellie, and homemade ice cream rounded out
the meal. Later, young and old alike enjoyed the hayrides that
Arp Pärdi provided before the bonfire lighting.

The 25th of June, we were visited by
”Gevi”, a group of folk musicians and dancers from Jõhvi,
Estonia. Their performance that evening was spellbinding; we
truly felt pride in our heritage! One of the musicians, whose
hobby Is making whistles out of reeds, gave some of his
handiwork to the children to enjoy. Many thanks to the Postma
family for graciously providing their spacious yard for this
very special event!

Going forward

The committee meeting for KODU was held
on Saturday, Sept. 15, to plan upcoming events. The first of
these is KODU’s 92nd anniversary party to be held on Saturday,
Nov. 10 this year, in the downstairs hall at St. Paul’s. We’ll
share a potluck meal and also have trivia quiz or other
amusements, and then screen a recent Estonian-made film, with
English subtitles, that all ages will enjoy. You may pay your
membership dues ($10) at this time.

We’ll join with the congregation for the
Christmas celebration and feast on Saturday, Dec. 8, 2018, and for
the Estonian Independence Day celebration on Feb. 23, 2019. The
Vastlapäev gathering is still being planned. However, the date
for Jaanipäev is confirmed for Saturday, June 15, 2019.

As always, we look forward to seeing
everyone at these events!

Oldest of
the three active Estonian organizations in the Detroit area is Estonian Educational Society of Detroit “Kodu”. This
organization was founded on October 17, 1926 by twenty five
local Estonians. The goal is to preserve Estonian native culture and language.